


jean strings

by blurring_the_lines



Series: collection [29]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: (more than) slightly awkward pacing, Alternate Universe - Mortal, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Hurt No Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, If You Squint - Freeform, Mortal AU, tiny bit of implied/refrenced child abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-17 00:08:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28965135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blurring_the_lines/pseuds/blurring_the_lines
Summary: Annabeth Chase changed Percy Jackson’s life forever. Yes, he realizes that it’s a cliché and in every chick flick rom-com that ever existed, but it’s true. She walked into his life, unforgettable, and stopped the world from spinning. The way she made him forget left from right, up from down, white from black. The way she shook everything at its core.So, yes. Annabeth Chase changed Percy Jackson’s life.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase & Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Percy Jackson & Sally Jackson
Series: collection [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2041193
Comments: 14
Kudos: 23





	jean strings

Annabeth Chase changed Percy Jackson’s life forever. Yes, he realizes that it’s a cliché and in every chick flick rom-com that ever existed, but it’s true. She walked into his life, unforgettable, and stopped the world from spinning. The way she made him forget left from right, up from down, white from black. The way she shook everything at its core.

So, yes. Annabeth Chase changed Percy Jackson’s life.

. .

Percy is five years old the first time he meets her. Looking back, he realizes he can’t exactly pinpoint when his life changed, or if it was just gradual and over time, but, whenever it happened, it must've started then. 

On the first day of Kindergarten, when everyone was the new kid and nobody had to worry about fitting in.

Later, when he was older and understood better how much that day meant to him, he’d replay it over and over in his mind, like a broken record. His favorite movie reminiscing of new beginnings and friendship.

His mom, Sally, had just dropped him off at his new school- Benjamin Lincoln’s Learning Curve for Children- or BLLC for short. Sort of a preposterous, bold name, he’d chuckle later, obviously wanting attention from the other schools.

An old, rundown building that had been once a hospital. State funding, though, proved to be the cut, and after fifteen years of it sitting and rotting, the new Mayor had decided that New York needed yet another school.

(Granted, Percy probably would’ve run out of schools in the New York area had it not been for that particular idea, but he chose to ignore that)

For now, he’d go to this “remodeled, new” building. Ask anyone and they’d tell you- the used-to-be hospital on the corner of 2nd and Maine was nothing more than chipping paint, rusted nails, and a sagging structure. 

“No place to keep a bunch of rough-housing monkeys,” his Aunt Aliyah had said (not really his aunt, but his moms best friend since grade school, and wouldn’t let him call her anything else)

That was probably why she hadn’t come with them to drop him off. Her excuse- “Mother and son bonding is important

especially on the first day of Kindergarten. Besides, hon, you work so hard. Go have some fun with your baby,”- was nothing more than that. An excuse. But, her mother had accepted the kiss on her cheek and had called in ‘sick’ to work.

“We’ll get ice cream after school,” She had promised, giving him a hug, “Mint chip, your favorite,”

He had nodded, saying goodbye and turning to put his backpack in his cubby. He had stood there, a moment, soaking in everything.

Some kids played with the blocks- clicking them together like music without a beat- and some played with play-doh- molding them in their tiny fists, trying to decide what masterpiece they would build next- but all of them were playing.

Except for one girl.

Percy walked into the corner where she was and sat down next to her, pulling at a loose thread in his jeans.

He heard her sniffle, “What do you want?”

Percy peered at her. She had blonde honey hair, curly like Cinderella’s was in the books. She didn’t have the same color eyes though, instead, they were a stormy grey.

It reminded him of his favorite weather- not raining, quite yet, but the sky darkened by the storm clouds overhead.

He smiles at her, “You just looked like an interesting person,”

He’s not quite sure why he said it. That’s not what he was going to say. He was going to ask what was wrong and if there was anything he could do to help. But, that’s not, of course, what came out of his mouth.

It’s not a lie, though, he realizes as her grey eyes meet his green. She does. Like maybe she knew how to do karate. Or knew where to punch you so that you’d ball up on the floor and cry (he hopes that’s not the case, because then he may have to worry). But, that's not why he had walked over here.

He had walked over because she picked at his jean strings- like he did.

“I’m not an interesting person,” she huffs- like it’s a bad thing.

He shrugs, “I think you are.”

She glares at him, “You don’t even know me,”

He shrugs, again, “So? My mom says everyone's interesting. It makes people ony- inc- un-”

“Unique?” she asks, raising an eyebrow.

He grins, “Yeah, that.”

She doesn’t look convinced.

“Okay, like this. I have green eyes, you have grey. I have black hair and you have yellow,”

“Blonde,”

“What?”

She sighs, impatiently, “Blonde. That’s what my hair is. Not yellow. Blonde,”

He blinks at her, “Okay,”

They lapse back into silence. Annabeth sniffles and her red button nose scrunches up.

“What’s wrong?” He finally asks

“None of your business,” she snaps.

After a minute though, she sighs, picking at pants again. It takes him a moment to realize he’s doing the same. He stops.

“I’ve never gone to school before. Well, pre-k. I didn’t go to pre-k. They told me I didn’t need it,”

He stares at her, “You didn’t need it?”

She shakes her head before continuing, “I don’t want to be here. I miss my dad,”

She draws her knees to her chest. Percy does the same.

“Do you wanna hug?” he blurts, instantly wishing, not for the first, and certainly not the last, time that he’d keep his mouth shut.

He nervously backtracks, “I mean, it’s just- my mom always gives me a hug and it always helps me feel better,” 

She’s staring at him. 

He blushes, “Forget it,” 

She keeps looking at him before her eyes go glassy, “Could I? Have a hug, I mean,”

Percy looks at her, surprised, before nodding and wrapping an arm around her.

. .

Percy hadn’t forgotten about her- the girl with startling grey eyes whose name he never learned. But, it’d been a while since she crossed his mind. 

That is, until two years later when he’s seven and in second grade. 

Maybe this is the moment it changed. When he saw the honey-haired girl unmistakable drawing her jean string out as she chewed on the end of her pencil.

He recognized her immediately. The way she held herself like she was going to rule the world and everyone else had to bow before her. The way she made crowds part like Moses did the Red Sea.

He was 99% sure she wouldn’t recognize him. He was pretty invisible. And not very memorable.

But, he slid in the desk next to her anyway.

Sometimes, he wonders if he hadn’t tapped his pen against his desk nervously, or if he hadn’t picked at his loose jean strings that morning if he would’ve met her. If he wouldn’t have seen her that day in Kindergarten if they wouldn’t have ended up going to the same school. If maybe, that one small action didn’t cause a chain of events- all focused on Percy and his world- that changed his life forever. Maybe in another universe, he picked sweatpants to wear instead of jeans and he never met her.

But he didn’t want to live in that universe. So he tries not to dwell on the hypotheticals.

Now, her eyes flitted to him and she threw a casual, “Hey,” and kept frowning at her desk.

He caught it with a, “Hey,” of his own, leaning back in his chair.

After a moment, he asks what her name is. She grins and her eyes glint like she knows something he doesn’t.

He doesn’t know much, though, so he wouldn’t be surprised.

She sticks out her hand, and says, “Annabeth Chase,” oddly formal for a seven-year-old.

Percy slaps it with his hand, “Percy Jackson,” he grins.

She looks between his hand and hers before tucking hers back into her pocket. He tries looking over to see what she’s working on, trying to see what they’re supposed to be doing, but he accidentally knocks over her water bottle, instead.

Se gives him an unimpressed look, sighing, “Really?”

He shrugs, shooting her a lopsided grin, “The water wanted to be free, Annabeth,” he teases, rolling the name around his mouth. He likes the way it feels, he decides.

She rolls her eyes, but not even she could deny the grin on her face, “Whatever, seaweed brain,”

He looks at her, “Seaweed brain?”

She gestured to the water mess, “Water. Seaweed. Idiot. Seaweed brain,” 

He raises an eyebrow, “Really?”

She grins.

“Whatever you say, Wise Girl,”

. .

From that moment on, they PercyandAnnabeth. Inseparable. Best friends. “Practically joined at the hip,” Aunt Aliyah teased as Sally chuckled.

Even as Annabeth’s dad remarried to a woman named Helen and even as Percy’s mom remarried to a man named Gabe, they stayed together. They were constants. Along with Friday movie nights, and weekend sleepovers. They never skipped it, it was like a routine. Something they couldn’t live without.

Percy thinks, maybe it’s because he can’t live without Annabeth, but he pushes the thought out of his head, too afraid of it being true.

“Careful, I might start thinking you like her more than me,” Sally laughs as he asks for yet another sleepover

“Nah, that’d never happen,” He grins, “She can’t bake,”

. .

“Give me one good reason why Mint Chip is better than Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough,”

He gapes at her, “You’re serious right now? Literally every single one of them,”

She scoffs, “Please. Mint Chip was like somebody who decided that toothpaste would be a good flavor of ice cream. And then, when that apparently wasn’t enough, they added chocolate chips,”

He sighs, “Annabeth, it’s okay. I know you’re jealous because it’s better, but that doesn’t mean you have to talk trash about it,”

She sticks her tongue out at him, and he returns the favor as she runs up ahead of him.

“Hey! Wait!” he calls, chasing after her.

She stops, making him run into her, and they both fall to the ground.

They laugh, breathlessly, staring at the clouds, laying shoulder-to-shoulder.

“Do you think we’re getting too old for this?” she asks

He stares at her freckles before shaking his head, adamantly, “No way,”

. .

**seaweed brain to wise girl**

**(3:04 AM) hey, can i come over?**

**wise girl to Seaweed Brain**

**(3:04 AM) Of course.**

Percy sighs, slipping out of his window and darting across the few streets that separated Annabeth’s and his house. Carefully tip-toeing across her yard, he’s disappointed to find that her window’s closed. 

He throws a stone at her and whisper-shouts, “Annabeth!” 

No answer. He does it again.

“Wise Girl!”

He can practically hear her sigh through the glass, watching as she hastily pulls up her window. 

“Really, Percy? You’re gonna get me in trouble! My dad will hear. Or Helen!”

Percy shoots her a lopsided grin, “Aww, they love me and you know it,”

She scoffs, moving over as he (clumsily) climbs in, “Not that much. Besides, I’d get grounded forever if they caught us,”

Percy blushes at the implication, “Well, then I guess we’ll just have to be quiet,” and with that, he trips over his shoelaces, hitting his shin against her desk’s leg and letting out a curse.

She raises an eyebrow, “Really?’

He scratches the back of his neck sheepishly, nodding, “Uh- yeah,”

She lets out a small laugh, as they settle down on her bed and she grabs his hand.

Percy’s been here a million times, in this position, even after “You’re too old for sleepovers,” he was constantly sneaking out to her house. He was pretty sure his mom knew about it, too.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” she asks softly because she can always tell if something’s wrong.

He shrugs, “There’s not really anything to talk about,”

Her thumb brushes against a bruise on his wrist, and takes a breath, “I’m sorry,”

He shrugs again, “It’s not your fault Gabe’s a jerk,”

“Still.”

He smiles at her, itching to change the subject and she loops her pinky though his

“You’re my best friend, you know that right?” he asks

She grins at him, “Of course. Why wouldn’t you be, I’m just that awesome,”

And he threatens to push her off the bed, but he doesn’t really mean it, and maybe he fell asleep next to her, but that’s okay because he escaped before anybody woke up.

. .

“High school sucks,” Annabeth groans

“You’re pointing out the obvious, now?” He asks, raising an eyebrow

“You got to say it last year, so I get to say it this year. High school sucks. We don’t have any of the same classes. Except for history, and Mr. D is a jerk,”

He grins at her, “Annabeth Chase is talking trash about the school,”

She snobbily stickers her nose up in the air, “I am not. Take it back,”

He mini-bows, making fun of her, “You’re right. Apologies, your highness,”

She laughs and shoves his shoulder, lightly. For a second, his heart makes his way up to his throat and maybe he forgets how to breathe for a second, but he recovers before she notices.

“I know, right?” Percy hears and he turns around to find himself face-to-face with Drew Tanaka- the school snob- and her friends.

She makes eye contact with Percy and Annabeth before knocking their books out of their arms.

“Ooops,” she says, blinking innocently at them. She goes back to her conversation, walking away.

“She’s a bitch,” Percy mutters

“World-class bitch, Percy, don’t get them confused,” 

He chuckles and Annabeth shoots him a grin. They crouch down to pick up their stuff, and he definitely doesn’t blush when their hands accidentally touch.

. .

“I’m sorry, Percy,” Annabeth sniffles

“Hey, don’t be sorry, Wise Girl. Luke was a Jerk. It’s not your fault he couldn’t see what was right in front of him,” 

She smiles at him, looking pretty damn cute with her scrunched up red nose and tear-streaked cheeks.

“I just- I don’t know what happened! We were doing fine! And then he just...ended it,” she sniffs again and he hands her a cookie.

“Maybe I read too much into it? Or maybe, I dunno, maybe I’m over exaggerating. We only dated for two months,”

“You liked him longer than that, though. You wouldn’t shut up about him, remember?”

She stares at him for a minute.

He frowns, “Annabeth?” he asks, waving a hand in front of her face.

She blushes and clears her throat, looking down at her jeans, “Uh- yeah. Yeah, I did. But still,” 

Percy shakes his head firmly, “No way. If he’s gonna be that way, you deserve way better,”

Percy loops his pinky thought hers and they lock eyes. For a minute he wants to kiss her and thinks maybe she does too (kiss him, not her, he means) but he knows that if he does he’ll fuck it up so he clears his throat and asks what movies she wants to watch. She looks a little disappointed, but replies with, “Ferris Bueller's Day Off,” and he grins because that’s the movie they used to watch every Friday when they were kids.

. .

“Happy nineteenth, Wise Girl,” Percy says, handing her a cupcake with grey icing on it.

She grins and gives him half, “Don’t worry, you’ll catch up soon,”

He sticks her tongue out at her but accepts the cake

“Gods, you’re so good at cooking. I don’t understand,”

Percy grins, “It’s genetic,”

“It must be,” she says, shoving the rest of the cake into her mouth.

He brushes the crumbs off his hands, wiping them on his jeans. His fingers catch on a loose string.

He and Annabeth are outside, stargazing, staring at the constellations. They always seemed to move for Percy- maybe it had to do with the world spinning on its axis, rotating. Or maybe it was his ADHD. Or maybe it was Annabeth’s fault, but either way, he could never quite remember where they were. 

He flipped over so he was on his side and she did the same thing so they were face-to-face.

The moonlight reflected off her face poetically.

“Thank you, Percy,” 

He grins at her, “For what?”

“For being my best friend,” she loops her pinky with his, “And for never leaving me,”

It feels like someone is sitting on his chest. And there are six million and three different things he wants to say to her-  _ needs _ to say to her- and they’re flying out of his mouth before he can stop them.

“Wise Girl, of course. You’re my best friend. I’d do anything for you and to see that smile. And I don’t really believe in Gods or capital G God or whatever, but I thank whoever’s in charge every day that I met you because I don’t know where I’d be with you. You’re my everything, Annabeth. And- Jesus- I don’t know where this is all coming from, I’m sorry, but-”

She cuts him off with a kiss. 

At first, Percy just sits there, wide-eyed and jaw-slacked, but then his brain screams at him-  _ hey, doofus, do something, kiss her back!- _ so he does.

He leans into her and cups her cheek, kissing her back. 

They only break away for air.

After a moment, though her face flushes, “Oh, God, what did I do?! I’m sorry, Perc-” but now it’s his turn to cut her off.

And, bless the heavens above, she tilts her head a little and he can smell her lemon shampoo and feel her curls brush against his face. It feels like everything bad in the world is gone. 

When he pulls away he leans his forehead against hers and mutters a breathless, “Thank you,”

She giggles in response.

. .

“Happy birthday, Seaweed Brain. Got you something,”

He smirks at her, “Is it better than your gift was?” 

She flushes and fidgets a bit, “I dunno it may be pretty close,”

His interest is piqued. But he also kind of doesn’t want to open it. He’s got everything he loves right in front of him. 

Looking absolutely (unfairly) gorgeous in his hoodie and a pair of her jeans, her hair un-brushed and hastily pulled back into a ponytail, Annabeth tosses him a tiny box. 

He opens it and- “It’s here in New York. It’s about a block away from your mom's. It’s just an apartment, and if you don’t-”

“Annabeth,” he interrupts, grinning at her. She looks up at him, “It’s perfect,” he says, holding up his car keys- now holding a new one to an apartment complex. 

. .

“Annabeth,” Percy sing-songs, gently shaking her, “ ‘Beth,”

She groans, rolling over, “What?”

He blushes- she always looks stunning in the morning

“I made pancakes,” 

She sits up, and mumbles an incoherent, “Pancakes?” as Percy laughs

“Ye. Banana pancakes. Annabanana pancakes,”

She snorts, “Seaweed brain,” and his grin grows.

“Do you want some or not? ‘Cause I could always eat them all with you,”

She scowls at him, “Fuck if you do,” and he laughs, again

“Then I may have to,”

She blushed and he laughs for the third time that morning.

“I’ll be downstairs waiting,” he sings

“You better not eat all the damn pancakes!” she shouts after him

“I won’t!” he calls back

. .

Today was the day. Today was the ay. Today was the day.

He whispered it like a mantra. His and Annabeth’s one year anniversary. And he was gonna propose.

_ He was gonna propose _ .

He took the ring box with shaky hands and slipped it into his pocket.

_ Today’s the day. _

He pulled at his jean string, nervously. He and Annabeth were going on a date- to Denny’s per her request. He wasn’t sure if the pancake-flipping employees had ever seen somebody propose there, but he supposed there was a first time for everything.

He couldn’t talk on the whole car ride there, too afraid he’d mess something up, or say or do something stupid.

When they arrived, Annabeth grinned and he was reminded why being with her was both simultaneously harder and easier.

“Remember when we went here in fourth grade?”

He grins, somehow, “Yeah we uh- ordered with the same thing,”

“Chocolate chip pancakes with two pieces of bacon,”

He laughs with her and he almost rips the ring out of his pocket right then and there.

“May I take your order?” A waitress- Hazel- asked. They both ordered and when she left, Percy found himself picking at his jeans, again. 

“Are you okay? You seem nervous,”

“Do I? No, I’m not nervous,” 

Thank the Gods their food comes then. Percy had a hard time stomaching anything, staying silent, and just nodding every once in a while as he listened to Annabeth blab about her construction job.

“Percy you seem really out of it are you sure you’re okay?” 

He stares up at her and he finds he’s unable to stop himself as his mouth opens for him. 

“No, no I’m not okay. I- I have a question and um- I’m not entirely sure how to ask it but,” he takes a deep breath, taking her hand and dropping on one knee. Her breath hitches and she’s got tears in her eyes (the rational part of his brain tells him that it’s because she knows what he’s doing, but the irrational part tell him that it’s because he’s messed everything up) “Annabeth Chase, will you marry me?”

She lets out a sob, and wraps her arms around his neck, “Yes! Yes! Of course, I will!” and he’s vaguely aware of the diner bursting into cheers and applause, but all he can focus on are Annabeth’s lips against his.

. .

Percy’s phone rings and he turns in on, checking the caller ID- Wise Girl. It’s pouring and he’s currently under a hotel balcony to stay dry, trying to call a cab. The raindrops slide down the passing car windows, racing to see which one wins the race. He watches as they fell from the almost-black clouds in the sky and hits the puddles with a plop.

He watches the ripple effect.

Maybe if he hadn’t met her on their first day of kindergarten, if they hadn't stolen each other’s food in the second grade, if he’d convinced her to stay the summer of seventh grade- instead of going to that dumb week-long camp- if he had texted her before he left that morning, made sure she was okay.

Maybe then, when he answered the phone,

“Hey, babe, what-”

An unfamiliar voice wouldn’t have answered,

“Is this Perseus Jackson?”

He swallowed, trying to get the worst-case scenarios out of his mind. maybe she was okay, maybe she was at work, and it was one of her coworkers, or maybe she had dropped her phone on the subway.

“Yeah?”

“Hello. I’m Dr. Solace, I’m just calling from United Families ER,”

Percy’s heart stops. Before Dr. Solace can finish, he’s chasing down a cab. He can only hear the voice on the other end of the line, ignoring the cabbies glare as he gets in wet, ignores the cars honking and the people shouting- for once wishing everything would just  _ shut up, godamnit _ ,  _ so he can focus. _

“I regret to inform you that your fiancé has been in an accident,”

His voice drowns out. Percy can’t breathe, and the cabbie is asking where to. He numbly answers. He can only hear the blood rushing in his ears. Doesn’t realize that the car stops and he gets out, slipping his phone in his pocket. Doesn’t notice when the person behind him has to open the hospital doors, because his hands are shaking. Doesn’t know that he’s asked for Annabeth Chase until he’s led by the nurse into her room.

He freezes when he sees her.

She’s got bandages wrapped everywhere. Across her forehead, her chest, her arms, and legs. Some of the blood is seeping through them. She’s covered in bruises and scratches. Purple, blue, black, yellow, red all bleeding together.

There’s a wire from an IV, one from an EKG machine, and a bunch of other wires connected to different machines. She’s got some in her nose, on her stomach, under her elbows, above her knees.

Her hair’s matted down around her face by grime and blood and sweat, and there’s dirt over almost every part of her body, except where he couldn’t see because of the hospital gown. Her eyes are closed.

And she’s never looked more beautiful.

He collapses into the chair next to her and gingerly grabbed her hand as the doctor explained what had happened.

There had been a drunk driver on the road, swerving and speeding. He hit her car, without stopping, flipping it 360, crushing her. When the airbag opened, the plastic cover flew and hit her head, full force. The driver's side door had caved in, all the windows shattered on impact, and she had been the direct hit.

“I’m sorry. We tried everything. But the only thing that’s keeping her alive is the breathing machines,”

Percy’s head snaps up.

_ No. No, no, nonononono. _

She couldn’t be- there was no way-

They were going to get married. A small, simple wedding with Annabeth’s and Percy’s parents and their friends. Not in a church, though, they’d never really believed in God. By a beach, maybe, Long Island Sound or Montauk. Annabeth would walk down the aisle because her mother had grudgingly given Percy her blessing, and she’d be wearing a traditional white dress. Percy would definitely cry and it would be percent.

They were going to have kids. Blonde, curly hair, and green eyes. Or black-haired and grey-eyed. And they’d watch them grow up and when they got to highschool l they'd cry. And they’d cry again when they sent them off to college. 

They were going to grow old together. They’d get matching grey streaks in their hair and Annabeth would get wrinkles, but she’d still be the most beautiful person Percy had ever seen. They were going to have a life together. 

_ Were. _

. .

Two hours later, papers signed and after saying goodbye to tearful parents, he’s in a cab, again, going back to their house.

_ His house. _

He gets out of the car, pays the cabbie, shuts the door behind him, and stands in front of the door for a good ten minutes before opening it. 

He didn’t live through it, though. Didn’t live through unlocking it and entering the house. DIdn’t live through turning on the light and taking off his coat and shoes. Didn’t live through sitting down on the couch. He only went through the motions. 

When he saw a pair of her jeans on the ground, the strings tugged loose, the knot inside him loosened.

And he sobbed.

Awful, heart-wrenching sobs. The kind of sobs that came from his gut and made him physically ill. He sobbed until his body was wracked with tremors until his eyes stung and his throat burned, and his stomach grew nauseous. Sobbed until he couldn’t anymore.

And then he kept sobbing.

. .

Maybe there hadn’t really been one particular moment when his world was flipped on its axis. When it stopped spinning and he lost his balance. When he wasn’t sure what the difference between right and wrong was. When his world was shook. 

When he was shook.

Shook to his very core. Shook inside out until he was left there a blushing, stuttering mess that couldn’t form a comprehensible thought (that’s just what she did to him).

Maybe it was the butterfly effect- one action changing the course of history. No. That wasn’t right, either. The butterfly effect made big changes, changes that reached people in China and Minnesota. Annabeth was a small change- she just affected everything else.

The Jean String effect.

One little change affecting a whole bunch of little changes until everything was different. Like how pulling at one tiny string in your jeans could affect a bunch of other ones- effectively unraveling your pants.

That’s what Annabeth Chase was. One tiny difference, that set off a bunch of other ones until Percy didn’t know his own name.

But she was worth it. 

Because she was everything to him.


End file.
